Articles

TIM DAVIS AND MATT HISER FLYING HIGH No Label No Number Flying High is a nice collection of mostly traditional, mostly well-known instrumental tunes. Tim Davis (banjo) and Matt Hiser (mandolin) are joined by Jonathan Campbell on bass, while Kris Davis and Jonathan Buckner share the guitar duties. Davis and Hiser are also joined by…

CHARLIE SIZEMORE HEARTACHE LOOKING FOR A HOME Rounder Records 11661-0657-2 Well, Charlie Sizemore is getting faster. Slightly. His last recording for Rounder, Good News, came after a five-year break. His latest was finished in four. During that time, the changes have been few. His excellent band of mandolinist Danny Barnes, reso-guitarist Matt DeSpain, and bassist…

THE MANDOLIN CASE BY DR. TOM BIBEY The front cover of this entertaining novel declares it to be “A Novel About Country Doctors, Honest Lawyers And True Music.” That’s a lot of ground to cover, but Dr. Tom Bibey does it with wit and a good grasp of the world of bluegrass. It’s a medical-legal…

VALERIE SMITH AND LIBERTY PIKE BLAME IT ON THE BLUEGRASS Bell Buckle Records bbr-022 There are just six songs on this new recording from Valerie Smith and Liberty Pike. All of them (and six others scheduled for release later in the year) were recorded in Owensboro at the International Bluegrass Music Museum and were produced…

STRAY GRASS WRITTEN IN THE STARS No Label No Number Stray Grass is a Colorado trio with their musical feet planted somewhere between folk and bluegrass, as influences of Hot Rize and New Grass Revival creep into their repertoire. The trio is Gary Tullio on mandolin and vocals, Guy Stephens on guitar and vocals, and…

NATHAN STANLEY MY KIND OF COUNTRY Stanley Generation Records 891805001855 The grandson of legendary bluegrass pioneer Dr. Ralph Stanley continues to branch out musically with his first-ever country album. Rest assured, though, that Nathan Stanley is not forsaking the roots of old-time mountain music that he firmly established from age two as a spoon player…